Good samaritans find missing boater

Crystal River, FL -- A family of good Samaritans found a boater who had been missing for nearly a full day, alive and bobbing in the water off the coast of Citrus County.

The U.S. Coast Guard says 51-year-old Efstathios Moumouris was taken back to shore to be evaluated by emergency medical service.

Coast Guard crews, along with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission had spent the several hours searching for Moumouris in the waters off the Fort Island boat ramp.

Moumouris' wife says he left on Wednesday in his 16-foot boat and did not return. Around 1:30 p.m., he texted her a picture of a fish he caught. A short time later he texted he was heading back. No one had heard from him since.

Search crews located his boat about nine miles west of the boat ramp around 4 a.m., but Moumouris was not on board.

FWC crews, a 24-foot Special Purpose Craft - Shallow Water boatcrew from Station Yankeetown, A MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew and a C-130 Hercules aircraft crew from Air Station Clearwater all went out and searched for Moumouris.

However, it was people on another boat on the water that ultimately found and rescued Moumouris.

The rescuers tell 10 News they had been out scalloping, but heard that a boater was missing so were also keeping an eye out for him. When they found Moumouris, he reportedly was not wearing a life jacket, but had been able to tread water for about 10 hours.

When he was taken aboard, the rescuers say Moumouris appeared to be dehydrated but was otherwise in good shape. He only asked for a phone to call his wife and for a drink of water.